Are there any hops you actually dislike?

After brewing enough hoppy beers, most of us come to form opinions about certain hop varieties. Based on conversations with brewers online and in real life, I've noticed that Simcoe and Chinook are especially polarizing. Ironically, it can be difficult to find a well-regarded commercial IPA that doesn't contain at least one of the two hops. For some time, I was in the Simcoe-hating camp, but I don't think I can sustain this belief any longer, considering how many of the commercial IPAs I like contain a lot of Simcoe (e.g., Alpine Duet, Sculpin). Either my tastes have changed, or my negative experiences were based on oxidized or otherwise poor examples of the hop. This change of heart has made me curious how strongly you all believe in your hop preferences, and how you justify them.

1. Are there any hops you categorically dislike (will not use in any beer)?
2. If so, do you dislike all commercial examples of beers that contain these hops; or, at least, do you feel that the beers would be better without them?

For reference, here's a list of the hops in some popular IPAs I pulled from The Mad Fermentationist and added to:

Alpine Duet - Simcoe and Amarillo

Alpine Hoppy Birthday - Pacific Jade, Centennial, Amarillo, Columbus, Nelson Sauvin, Citra, and Simcoe.

Alpine Nelson - Nelson Sauvin and Southern Cross

Alpine Pure Hoppiness - Hallertau, Hersbrucker, Tomahawk, Cascade and Centennial

Ballast Point Sculpin - Mash hops: Simcoe, Boil: CTZ, Chinook, Cascade, Northern Brewer, Centennial, Galena, Amarillo, Dry Hop: Amarillo & Simcoe. For a 5 gallon batch dry hop with about 3 oz of each.

Bell's Hopslam - Hersbrucker, Centennial, Glacier, Vanguard, and Crystal in the kettle, and then dry hopped with Simcoe.

Bear Republic Racer 5 - Chinook, Cascade, Columbus, Centennial

Captain Lawrence Captain's Reserve - Columbus, Chinook, and Cascade

Cigar City Jai Alai - Kettle hops: Ahtanum, Columbus, Cascade, Amarillo, and Centennial. Dry hopped with Simcoe.

Coast The Boy King - Citra, Chinook, Nugget, Cascade, Centennial and Columbus.

Firestone Walker Double Jack - Bittering: Warrior, Columbus; Late Kettle: Cascade, and Centennial;
Dry Hops: Amarillo, Cascade, Centennial, and Simcoe

Fat Head's Head Hunter - Simcoe, Columbus, and Cascade

Firestone Walker Union Jack - Bittering: Warrior, Simcoe; Late Kettle: Cascade, Centennial; Dry Hops: Amarillo, Cascade, Centennial, Chinook, Simcoe

Flying Fish Exit 16 - FW: Citra, Boil: Columbus, 5 min: Cenntenial: 3 min: Simcoe, WP: Citra, First DH: 50% chinook, 50% Citra, Second DH: 75% Citra, 25% Columbus

Green Flash West Coast IPA: Simcoe, Columbus, Centennial, Cascade

Hill Farmstead Abner - Chinook, Citra, Columbus, Simcoe, and Warrior

Hill Farmstead Ephraim - Centennial, Chinook, Columbus, Simcoe, and Warrior

Hill Farmstead Double Galaxy - Galaxy

Kern River Citra Double IPA - Nugget to bitter, Citra in the kettle, and Citra and Amarillo dry hop

New Belgium Ranger IPA - Chinook, Simcoe, Cascade

Russian River Pliny the Elder - Kettle hop extract, Simcoe, Columbus, Centennial. Dry Hop Simcoe, Columbus, and Centennial.

Russian River Pliny the Younger - Bittered with extract, Amarillo and Simcoe (plus others?) in the boil.
Dry Hop Schedule
DH 1 Simcoe, Amarillo, Centennial for one week and remove
DH 2 Amarillo, Centennial for one week and remove
DH 3 Simcoe for one week and remove
DH 4 Simcoe, Amarillo Dry Hop in Keg

Sierra Nevada Celebration: Cascade, Centennial, Chinook

Sierra Nevada Ruthless Rye: Bravo, Chinook, Citra, & New Proprietary Variety

Sierra Nevada Hoptimum: Magnum, Simcoe, New Proprietary Variety

Sierra Nevada Torpedo: Magnum, Crystal, Citra

Smuttynose Big A IPA - 2008: Nugget, Cascade, Centennial, Crystal, Chinook, Sterling. 2006: Warrior, Cascade, Centennial, Crystal, Horizon, Amarillo, Ahtanum

Smuttynose "Finestkind" - Bittering: Magnum; Flavoring: Simcoe, Centennial, Santiam; Dry hops: Amarillo

Southern Tier Unearthly IPA - Kettle Hops: Chinook and Cascade, Hop Back: Styrian Golding, Dry Hopped: Cascade, Centennial, and Chinook

Stone IPA: Columbus, Chinook, Centennial

Stone Ruination: Columbus & Centennial

Surly 16 Grit/Abrasive - Warrior, Citra (Previously CTZ bittering extract, Amarillo, and Columbus. Before that, kettle hopped with CTZ extract, Amarillo and Glacier hops. Twice dry-hopped with Glacier and Amarillo).

Surly Furious - Warrior, Ahtanum, Simcoe, and Amarillo

Three Floyds Dreadnaught - Warrior, Simcoe, Centennial, and Cascade

Three Floyds Zombie Dust - Citra

Town Hall Masala Mama - Amarillo, Cascade, Centennial, and Mt. Hood

There are only two varieties I can think of right now that I dislike. I don't like fuggles, because I think they taste like dirt. And I don't care for citra, which is far to "tropical fruit" for me- it screams MANGO to me and reminds me of Juicy Fruit gum.

I don't mind the citra in Sierra Nevada's Torpedo though. I think it goes ok with the other hops, so that I don't get too much tropical fruit.

Fuggles, though, I can smell and taste a mile away and just don't care for it.

Summit. Apparently there are several suppliers. I lost track which one is which, but it can have a horrible flavor depending on which one it is from.

I really dislike some of the high alpha ones, especially nugget. Most of the popular IPA hops either taste like pinesol, bong water or cat piss to me but I think thats because they always end up in the crazy over hoppy beers and I'd probably like them in moderation. ...Fuggles is awesome in dark beers in moderation but I agree with Yooper if the beer has a big late addition of it.

I'm sure it is a good hop, but I've yet to make a really good beer with Styrian Goldings. I think I need to find it a good dance partner.

I can take any of the "Noble Hops" in small doses only. I'm primarily a fan of American and "C" hops.

I don't like that new one "Belma."

Zythos. It's supposed to take the place of centennial and cascade in the hop shortage, or so I'm told. Holy crap it's gross.

That's it though. Even though fuggles smells like sweaty feet, I like it in an american brown ale.

I am not a big fan of citra anymore. Have been using it to bitter with because its clean, high alpha and I have like 3 pounds of it. It's just no good or flavor or aroma for me.

Yooper said:

There are only two varieties I can think of right now that I dislike. I don't like fuggles, because I think they taste like dirt. And I don't care for citra, which is far to "tropical fruit" for me- it screams MANGO to me and reminds me of Juicy Fruit gum.

I don't mind the citra in Sierra Nevada's Torpedo though. I think it goes ok with the other hops, so that I don't get too much tropical fruit.

Fuggles, though, I can smell and taste a mile away and just don't care for it.

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HURRAY! Gary Glass and I have a "Fuggle hater club". Wanna join?

LabRatBrewer said:

I'm sure it is a good hop, but I've yet to make a really good beer with Styrian Goldings. I think I need to find it a good dance partner.

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I'm not a big fan of straight styrian in any quantity as it seems to taste either grassy or metallic but ever since the brewing network CBYI Hobgoblin ep I've become a fan of a late addition Styrian/Cascade blend. The keg I just tapped is a pale ale I did with 1.25oz of Styrian and .25oz of Cascade at zero and I'm really happy with it. Just a little bit of cascade (but not enough to identify as "cascadey") really punches up the english hops.

Cluster. It's half of a word.

Cascade by itself is unpleasant to me. Even in combinations where it is 50% are still not pleasing. As a bittering hop, hate it.

Late addition German Magnum is not great. It tastes dirty.

jamesdawsey said:

Zythos. It's supposed to take the place of centennial and cascade in the hop shortage, or so I'm told. Holy crap it's gross.

That's it though. Even though fuggles smells like sweaty feet, I like it in an american brown ale.

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Yes! It was nothing but distilled turd flavor to me. Awful.

I don't like Willamette by itself, which is not so different from disliking Fuggles and Slovenian Fuggles, aka, Styrian Goldings. I do like it in a Rye Amber with a lot of Cascade. I suppose there are probably a lot of hops that are great when used as part of a combination in the right style, and pretty dreadful in the wrong circumstances. I like to put hot sauce on a lot of different foods, but I've never eaten a bowl of it.

All I can say is that I've had my local microbrews Rye IPA (Maumee Bay Rye Level IPA) and it was the single most disgusting beer I've ever had. They boast five hops, but only name Amarillo and Cascade, so I can't say what it was, but damn, it was just... terrible. Like eating a lemon rind wrapped around a clove of garlic, with a touch of puke. Gah.

I have love for MBBC, but.... gah.

I'm somewhat new to this, so I can only recognize a handful of hops, but of the ones I've used so far, I don't like Galena. I used it as a bittering hop, yet I can still taste it in the resulting beer. It just tastes like stale dirt, or even a little like oxidized beer to me.

I really don't like any of the piney, resiny hops; is that Chinook? Anything that tastes like gin or a pine tree, no thank you.

Not a huge fan of Citra, but I don't mind it too much.

My favorites are Cascade and Zythos. I'm frankly a little surprised at the Zythos-hate I'm seeing in this thread! My house pale ale uses nothing but Zythos.

Denny said:

HURRAY! Gary Glass and I have a "Fuggle hater club". Wanna join?

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I didn't realize I was in such exalted company.

I love most English style beers, but anything with fuggles tastes like someone put a handful of dirt into it. I get "earthy", but this isn't earthy at all to me- it tastes like garden soil! Yuck.

I hate Simcoe. I know it's supposed to be like the greatest thing since oral sex, but I just can't stand it.

Not a fan of Fuggles as well, or Willamette, except in dark beers. And I really dislike Northern Brewer - especially when used in a lager or a pale ale. Tastes like I'm drinking a piece of wood

I think it's more about the way the hops are used, the amount you settle on, and the style of beer they are used in... rather than the particular strain of the hop.

There's a time and place for them all!

gbx said:

I'm not a big fan of straight styrian in any quantity as it seems to taste either grassy or metallic but ever since the brewing network CBYI Hobgoblin ep I've become a fan of a late addition Styrian/Cascade blend. The keg I just tapped is a pale ale I did with 1.25oz of Styrian and .25oz of Cascade at zero and I'm really happy with it. Just a little bit of cascade (but not enough to identify as "cascadey") really punches up the english hops.

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I'll find that show, and give the recipe a try. Thanks for the tip.

Edit: here's the recipe on HTB: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f12/can-you-brew-recipe-wychwood-hobgoblin-273932/

I agree with the "Fuggles = dirt" sentiment. Funny thing: I thought that I didn't like tetnanger either, but after reading "For the Love of Hops" it turns out that what is called Tetnanger in the US is probably a Fuggles clone. Now I need to seek out the real stuff and try it out.

I have several that I don't like as a single hop. Simcoe, summit, cluster and galena to name a few. Used with other hops they can work well though.

There are however two that will never be in a beer I brew. Pride of Ringwood tastes like a mix of chemicals. And the aforementioned fuggle. They taste like mud.

Nugget and Cluster taste like cat piss to me. Can't stand them. To each their own, I like several of the hops mentioned previously.

Not a lot of love for fuggles or styrian goldings around here. To that I ask, what do you think of cilantro?

I used to be a big fan of citra, although lately beers brewed with them have started to taste a bit onion-y for me.

Hands down, the worst hop I've ever tried was Argentinian cascade.

Too new to hate any hops yet...but the Zythos we hopped with at flameout last weekend had a very strange smell to it. I am not optimistic.

Update- I rescind this comment. Brew came out VERY nice. Less intensity than cascade with a very nice aroma.

I gotta be honest, I'm not big on Cascades.

I know, I know, kinda crazy. But they just never really satisfy me. I would never say they're gross (ex. Fuggles, smells like cheese to me, but I don't mind it as like a 30 minute addition) but just not a huge fan. I'll use cascade in small doses as finishing hop or aroma hop, but I think it's awful as a bittering hop. Don't mind it as a FWH though.

Pilgarlic said:

Cluster. It's half of a word.

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+1
I can do without catpiss...thank you.

I personally don't have enough experience with enough hops to really pinpoint a certain one I dislike. With only 25 batches or so under my belt, I've used a handful of hops.

However, I can say that I hate used hops. I mean, coming out of the beer they are slimy, wet, and just gross. Does this count?

Just goes to show DSDF, I love the earthy funk of Fuggles and an all-Cascade Saison. Guess I'm a heathen.

Here I go, get your stones ready.
I hate Saaz! It tastes like I imagine an old damp table soaked with rancid butter and ash!

badlee said:

Here I go, get your stones ready.
I hate Saaz! It tastes like I imagine an old damp table soaked with rancid butter and ash!

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And I use pounds of it.

you want to be careful you dont get buttery splinters in your mouth

Wow, Styrian Goldings are one of my favorites. But if you use them in a pale ale or IPA I can understand why you wouldn't like them. I use them in English and Belgian styles.

I haven't come across any hops that I really hate, but I've only been brewing a year. Like somebody else said, I think any hop can be good if used well in the right style.

Actually, I kind of hate Citra, although I've never used them. I just hate that people rave about them so much. It's just annoying.

I'm going to give it another shot at some point because I've had some great beers with it since I tried it myself, but my first experience with Bramling Cross was not a good one. It was supposed to have black currant and lemon notes, but instead I ended up with something that had that harsh bitter flavor you get from burnt garlic. Gross. I think my mistake was using it to bitter.

signpost said:

Actually, I kind of hate Citra, although I've never used them. I just hate that people rave about them so much. It's just annoying.

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ha. people here freak out when the LHBS runs out of Citra, Simcoe and Amarillo as if you can't brew anything without them.

Yooper said:

I love most English style beers, but anything with fuggles tastes like someone put a handful of dirt into it. I get "earthy", but this isn't earthy at all to me- it tastes like garden soil! Yuck.

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This is, to me, earth shattering, as I've taken your advice (unbeknownst to you, I'm sure) many, many times on here.



Fuggles are, as is, my favorite hops to date. Granted, I appreciate a beer with a maltier profile over all others -- which is why I started brewing (so I could control IBUs).

I think they accentuate the (yes, earthy) subtle characteristics of a malty beer. For anyone who like to hover under 20 IBUs, I think they're essential.

That said ( you phrase haters can eat me), I despise -- absolutely reject anything brewed with them -- Cascade hops. I think they're overused, and they've been in every beer I hoist, look at disparagingly, and say, "Yep. I'm not cool enough for this beer."

Again, that all said, my upcoming blonde is all US Tettnang, so I'll let you know how it goes.

corwin3083 said:

I hate Simcoe. I know it's supposed to be like the greatest thing since oral sex, but I just can't stand it.

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I'm with you there!! I use it for bittering because anything else is just disgusting. It smells and taste like cat pee smells.